Apparatus for cleaning objects by spraying

ABSTRACT

The apparatus uses a low pressure water stream, from a tap source, into which chemicals can be selectively introduced, and a high pressure water stream produced by a pump, into which chemicals can be selectively introduced, and an air stream into which chemicals can be selectively introduced. A heated water supply provides water for the high pressure stream. All the streams lead to a single spray pistol, the spray pistol having control switches for controlling the lines and chemicals.

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 377,207 filed May 5,1982, now abandoned.

A principal object of the invention is to provide apparatus for cleaningobjects in industry, as in service stations, in shipping, as well as inagriculture and household areas, by which the object to be cleaned iswashed by means of a spray pistol and fluid streams mixed with cleaningand servicing chemicals.

Apparatus of this general kind has taken various forms in the past, andherein a high pressure stream is utilized, drawn by a pump from a heatedwater supply and with which chemicals are mixed, and the resultingmixture is sprayed from a spray pistol (spray lance). This high pressurestream is of low mass and has a strong effect of removing dirt due toits high pressure.

Heretofore in order to achieve a good cleaning effect, a very hightemperature of the water stream was necessary, which would entail aconsiderable amount of heat. The water used was warmed or heated bysuitable means. In the use of a high pressure stream, there wasinsufficient time for the chemicals to penetrate the dirt to be removed.Also because of the high velocity of the stream, an electrostatic chargewould develop on the object to be cleaned, and the cleaning result wouldbe impaired.

It has also heretofore been known to utilize a water tube, with a washbrush and shampoo rods, to cleanse the object and to provide chemicalsby means of a special pump or equivalent means.

A disadvantage of such a pump though is that strong chemicals cannot beused, and when changing from one object to another, the entire spraytube must be emptied and cleaned, which entailed a great amount ofvaluable time, and relatively expensive chamicals would be wasted. Thereis the further disadvantage that water soluble cleaning means areavailable only in concentrated form and must be thinned before use.

The present invention provides apparatus and method which are extremelyeffective with less effort and can go from a low pressure operation to ahigh pressure operation, and be operated substantially more effectivelyand inexpensively than high pressure cleaning, or low pressure cleaningtaken by itself.

In carrying out the present invention several working stages areutilized: in a first stage a low pressure stream of water is utilized,from the general supply or community supply; in a second stage the lowpressure is shut off and the chemicals are permitted to penetrate thedirt to be removed; and in a third stage the chemicals are washed offwith a high pressure stream.

The present invention utilizes a combination of low pressure and highpressure, in which a low pressure step is added to a high pressure step.This has the advantage that the chemicals are applied with low pressure,which results in sparingly applying the chemicals on the object to becleaned. The low pressure stream is shut off after the chemicals areapplied in the second stage, so that the chemicals can penetrate thedirt to be removed for a longer time. Thereafter, the high pressurecleaning is resumed and in this the third stage, the chemicals arewashed off with the high pressure stream. This assures completeelimination of the chemicals, and the high pressure stream itself,without the chemicals, performs a further cleaning effort.

In the present invention, the combination of the low pressure and highpressure stages, perform an effect far superior to previously knownprocedures.

The present invention also encompasses a fourth stage in which waterremaining on the object being cleaned from the high pressure stream, isblown off with air pressure. This step is of special importance in suchoperations as cleaning motors, ignition distributors, spark plugs, andother water sensitive items.

A further advantage of the invention is that in utilizing an air stream,additional chemicals can be introduced, such as spray wax, felloecleaners, insect repellents, etc. This step deals with chemicals thatare effective for cleaning, in air, without the use of water.

The apparatus, utilizing a combination of low pressure and high pressurecleaning steps, and alternatively with air cleaning steps, has theadvantage that a considerably lower temperature (c.45° C.) can beutilized, and smaller amounts of water are used, and that with lesserpressures. The apparatus therefore results in conserving energy andthere is not so great a demand on the operator for the exact executionof the spray stream, as was previously the case with high pressurecleaning, since the dirt is already loosened by the previous lowpressure cleaning.

The apparatus has the further advantage that it is ideally suited forself service operation (coin operated), since it can be readily operatedby unskilled operators.

In order to accommodate strong chemicals, instead of using pumps,injectors may be used. The chemicals are provided in a plurality ofcontainers, in order to accommodate different kinds of chemicals.Drawing in the chemicals into the fluid streams is controlled bymagnetically operated valves, and the use of injectors for drawing inchemicals enables stronger chemicals to be used, that could notordinarily be accommodated by pumps.

The magnetically operated valves, for controlling the drawing in ofchemicals may be controlled by selection switches mounted on the handleof the spray pistol. Such control may be wireless, or remote control, orby using conductors.

In order that expensive and time consuming cleaning of conduits isavoided, in changing from one chemical to another, the apparatusincludes chemical ducts or passages feeding directly into the spraypistol in a common suction conduit, so that in changing from onechemical to another, it may be done quickly, instead of opening one ductafter another, in an expensive cleaning or emptying of the previouslyused chemical duct.

DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the drawings,

FIG. 1 is a diagram of the apparatus including high pressure, lowpressure, and air phases; and

FIG. 2 shows a modified form of spray pistol, and diagram of relatedcomponents of the apparatus.

FIG. 1 shows a float valve 2 in a water supply 1, controlling the waterlevel in a boiler 3, the latter having an electrical heating rod 4.Preferably the water temperature is maintained at 45° C. by means of athermostat. Upstream from the float valve 2 is a branch line 29,constituting a low pressure duct or line, through which the water is fedfrom the water supply 1 into the low pressure phase of the apparatus,while a duct 34 is utilized for supplying water from the boiler 3 to thehigh pressure pump 5. The low pressure line 29 includes a magnetic valve11 controlled by an activating switch which may be at a convenient placein the housing of the apparatus, or directly on the handle of the spraypistol 16 as indicated at 16a.

The low pressure line 29 includes, at a position downstream from thevalve 11, a back pressure or check valve 13, and then leads to aninjector 12. The back pressure valve 13 operates to hold a high pressurefluid from a high pressure line 28, from backing into the low pressureline 29 and then into the water supply.

The injector 12 develops a lowered pressure in the line 35 whichincludes a back pressure valve 13a and a metering valve 15, leading froma line 33, the latter having a plurality of branches including magneticvalves 32 in a plurality of containers 31 containing the chemicals to beutilized. These branch lines include magnetic valves 32. In this casealso these valves may be controlled by selection switches positioned ata suitable location, such as on the handle of the spray pistol 16 as at16a.

In the injector 12 the chemical that is drawn from the selectedcontainer 31 is mixed with the low pressure water stream and supplied tothe line 37 and the joining line 38 of the spray pistol. The handle ofthe spray pistol includes a shut-off valve, and upon that valve beingopened, the stream is sprayed through the spray pipe 17 and nozzle 18.

The apparatus also includes a high pressure phase which includes thehigh pressure pump 5 which draws warmed water from the boiler 3 throughthe line 34. At the suction side of the pump 5 is a line 36 whichincludes a metering valve 30, and through this line 36 chemicals aredrawn out of a container 14, this line including magnetic valves 11controlled by switches at suitable locations.

Instead of using separate chemical containers 14 and 31, a single suchcontainer may be used, with the suction line 36 connected with thesuction line 33.

The chemicals drawn in through the suction line 36 are mixed with thewater stream drawn in through the line 34, and the pump 5 develops ahigh pressure water stream and forces it through the high pressure line28, and the back pressure valve 13b, and then to the spray pistol 16.The back pressure valve 13b prevents the fluid from the low pressureline 37 from entering into the line 28.

The high pressure line 28 includes a safety valve 10, a manometer 9 anda water depository 7. The high pressure pump 5 is driven by an electricmotor 6.

By means of the confluence of the high pressure line 28 with the lowpressure line 37, at the spray pistol 16, it is consequently possiblewith a single spray pistol, to form a low pressure stream of greatvolume and a high pressure stream with relatively small volume.

Another feature of the invention is that air pressure can be used in thelow pressure phase of the apparatus. The low pressure line 37 includes aT-piece 39 from which a branch line leads, including a back pressurevalve 42 at the outlet of an injector 41. At the inlet of the injector41 air pressure is supplied through a connector line 40. A suction line43 includes a reverse pressure valve 43a and a metering valve 43b, andthe chemicals are drawn out of the containers 31, selectively in thedirection of the arrow 44.

This air stream, including the chemicals mixed therein, is fed throughthe spray pistol 16, and by means of the air stream itself with thechemicals being cut off, the lines can be blown clean upstream of theT-piece 39, the air stream continuing through the spray pistol and thenozzle 18 thereof, and blowing water residue from the object beingcleaned.

A modified form is shown in FIG. 2, which includes an air pressuredriven spray pistol 21. In this arrangement an additional line 38wherein a high pressure water stream, as well as the low pressure waterstream, can be directed to the pistol 21. Additionally, this arrangementprovides for an air pressure stream with chemicals therein.

Consequently, the spray pistol 21 shown in FIG. 2 is capable of sprayinga water stream with chemicals mixed therein, or an air stream withchemicals mixed therein.

In the operation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, an air stream is fedthrough the conductor 19, and it flows through a pressure reducer 20 anda manometer 9. An injector 22 is built in in the handle of the pistoland is capable of mixing chemicals in the air stream or water stream. Ashort distance upstream of the injector are suction lines 45, 46, 47,through which the chemicals are supplied from the supply containers, 25,26, 27, as controlled by the magnetic valves 11.

Upon actuation of magnetic valves 11, the corresponding chemicals aredrawn from the containers by the injector 22, this arrangementeliminating previously known techniques which included a complicated setof steps for emptying and cleaning the suction lines. This arrangementprovides an extremely great advantage in spraying of expensivechemicals, in that they can be accurately controlled and usedspraringly, and excess chemicals eliminated.

The air pressure stream in the line 48 provides a confining effect inpreventing an excessive spreading out of the air pressure streamemaniting from the spray pipe 24. The line 49, into which the suctionlines 45, 46, 47, feed, is made of short length, to minimize loss ofchemicals passing through the lines.

As in the case of the apparatus of FIG. 1, the magnetic valves 11 may becontrolled by a switch mounted in the handle of the spray pistol 21, orby a switch at any appropriate location in the apparatus.

I claim:
 1. Cleaning apparatus for use with a common low pressure watersupply, container means for chemicals, and a spray pistol for sprayingmaterials onto objects to be cleaned, comprising,a high pressure lineleading from the water supply to the spray pistol, pump means fordeveloping high pressure in the high pressure line, and for drawingchemicals from said container means into the high pressure line, a lowpressure line leading from the water supply to the spray pistol inbypassing relation to the high pressure line, injector means operable,in response to the flow of water in the low pressure line, forintroducing chemicals from said container means into the low pressureline, and the low pressure line being substantially free ofinstrumentalities, other than said injector means, and thereby operablefor conducting water therethrough at substantially the low pressure ofthe water supply, means for selectively controlling the introduction ofchemicals into the lines respectively, and independently of said pumpmeans, and check valve means in the lines between the points ofintroduction of the chemicals into the lines, respectively, and thespray pistol.
 2. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1 for use alsowith a compressed air supply, and including,an air line leading from theair supply to the spray pistol in bypassing relation to the highpressure line and the low pressure line, injector means operable inresponse to the flow of air in the air line, for introducing chemicalsfrom said container means into the air line, means for selectivelycontrolling the introduction of chemicals into the air lineindependently of the high pressure line and the low pressure line, andcheck valve means in the air line between the point of introduction ofchemicals into the line and the spray pistol.
 3. Cleaning apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein,at least one of said lines, constitutingfluid lines, leads into the interior of the spray pistol, the apparatusincludes a plurality of chemical lines leading from the chemicalcontainers into the interior of the spray pistol, and the spray pistolincludes means operable for drawing chemicals through the chemical linesin response to flow of fluid through the fluid line, whereby thechemicals are mixed with the fluid and the resulting mixture is sprayedfrom the spray pistol.